People

Oct 03, 2006

Minnesota lawmaker Keith Ellison won the Democratic primary for his Minneapolis-area congressional district September 12, paving the way for him to become the first Muslim in Congress. Ellison, who was elected as a state representative in 2002, took 41 percent of the vote, beating six other contenders in the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Ellison, 43, who is black, converted to Islam as a college student. A strong critic of the Iraq war, Ellison is considered the favorite in the liberal district.